Favored players deliver

Robbie Schorr leans forward to return a shot to Ken Song during their boys U18 singles game in the 10th TanHoldings Tennis Classic last Saturday at the Hyatt Regency Saipan court. (Contributed Photo)

There was no upset in the boys singles event in the 10th TanHoldings Tennis Classic, as favored players lived up to high expectations after topping their respective divisions over the weekend.

Anthony Gregoire led the list of seeded players who clinched singles titles in Northern Mariana Islands Tennis Association’s first tournament of the 2019-2020 season after ruling the boys U14 contest, as he posted a perfect record (4-0) in the round-robin competition.

Gregoire flew in from Guam just for the weekend event and notched back-to-back victories last Saturday, dominating Sunny Kang first in the morning match at the Fiesta Resort & Spa court, 6-0, 6-0. He returned at the Fiesta court in the afternoon and eased past Min Seong Kim, 6-1, 6-1. For his third straight game at the Fiesta court, Gregoire faced No. 2 seed Jun Cheol Hwang and won, 7-6 (4), 6-2, to virtually seal the division championship last Sunday morning. The Guam-based CNMI junior player went on to sweep his singles assignment after routing Ki Suk Lee in the afternoon match at the Hyatt Regency Saipan court, 6-0, 6-0.

In other results, Robbie Schorr, Andy Kim, and June Yu, who are all seeded first in their respective divisions, duplicated Gregoire’s undefeated records.

Yu eked out a 4-6, 6-1, 10-8 triumph over Wataru Kadokura in the boys U12 singles semifinals last Saturday and then registered a 6-2, 6-4 win over No. 2 seed Nason Wessel in the finals. Wessel reached the finals following a 6-2, 7-6 (4) victory against Takeru Jim in the other semis pairing, while Kadokura also outclassed the latter in the consolation match, 8-6, to round out the Top 3 in the division.

In the boys U18 singles, Schorr bagged a 4-0 mark to prevail in the round-robin competition. The No. 1 seed first played against Sean Lee last Saturday and coasted to a 6-0, 6-0 win. Next up for Schorr was Ken Song and the former also took only two sets to win, 6-1, 7-6 (4). For his third match, the 17-year-old dueled No. 2 seed Jimin Woo and labored his way through a 6-2, 3-6, 13-11 in the morning game win to clinch the championship. Schorr kept his perfect record after getting a free victory over Malika Miyawaki (walkover).

Woo and Song joined Schorr in the Top 3 as the former finished with a 3-1 mark. Song bagged third place, as he ended up with an even 2-2 slate following a 6-3, 6-3 win over Lee last Sunday.

In the boys U16 singles, which drew the most participants with 11, Kim did not drop a single set en route to notching the division champion. He capped his perfect run in the competition with a 6-1, 6-3 win over No. 4 Jun Wang in the finals.

Kim reached the title game after eliminating Hyun Min Cho, 6-4, 6-2, and David Kwon, 6-4, 6-2, while Wang prevailed against Eugene Park, 6-4, 1-6, 10-3, and then stunned No. 2 seed Daniel Kang in the semis, 6-1, 6-4.

Anthony Gregoire, left, gestures to Jun Cheol Hwang after scoring a point against Hyun Min Cho and Andy Kim in the boys U16 doubles game in the 10th TanHoldings Tennis Classic last Saturday at the American Memorial Park tennis courts. (Contributed Photo)